Sorry I'm Late
by DobbyRocksSocks
Summary: It took a while, but he finally got that dance.


**Disclaimer - I own nothing you recognise. **

**Challenges listed at the bottom. **

**Word Count** \- 617

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**Sorry I'm Late **

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"—I can't believe you're actually here," Howard said, for the third time. He was very excited as the two of them paced down the hall. "Peg is going to lose her mind!"

Steve smiled slightly. He would be happy to see Peggy; she was most of the reason he'd decided to return when given the option after all.

As they passed by a group of people, Steve heard, "He's supposed to be dead."

He turned, just in time to see another man shrug. "Yeah. Weird. Anyway—"

Howard led Steve into an office and waved him into a seat. "I'll be back in a few minutes with Peggy, just… wait here. Don't go anywhere."

Chuckling, Steve assured him that he had no plans to leave anytime soon.

He looked around the office with interest as he waited. It would be strange to see things happen as they happened instead of everything just being available. It would certainly be interesting to see all the smaller things he'd missed while he'd been in the ice.

A few minutes later, he heard Howard and Peggy approaching.

"— told you, it's a surprise."

Peggy groaned. "I knew I shouldn't have gotten out of bed today. Your surprises often leave a lot to be—"

Howard opened the door and Steve stood up, smiling when Peggy stopped dead in the doorway.

"Sorry I'm a bit late for our date, Peg," Steve said.

He wasn't really expecting her to faint.

…

"It was a happy faint," she insisted, when Steve checked again that she was okay. "But we're still never going to talk about it again, understood."

He met her eyes with his own, maintaining eye contact as he nodded solemnly. "Talk about what?"

"That's right. I… how are you even here right now? I thought you were _dead_."

"Does it really matter?" he asked. "I'm here, and… I'm not going anywhere. Besides… I owe you a dance, don't I?"

…

"What's the point of going out? We're just going to wind up back here anyway," she said, later that night.

Steve had been insisting that he take her dancing immediately, to make up for the date he'd missed; the date he'd spent years in the future thinking about.

When he looked up at her, her eyes were sparkling with happiness, and he tugged her into his arms. "Well, how about we dance right here instead then?"

"Perfect," she agreed.

In minutes, music was playing in her living room, and she was in Steve's arms, her head resting comfortably on his chest.

"I thought I'd never see you again," she admitted, voice little more than a whisper.

He didn't want to tell her that the feeling was mutual; that he'd suffered the pain of her death like she'd suffered his.

"I'm sorry," he murmured instead. "I didn't ever want to hurt you."

"You're here now," she said, a call back to his earlier words. "Promise you won't leave me behind again."

"I promise."

…

"You'll be his godparents, of course?" Howard asked, eyes bright with happiness as he stared down at the baby in his arms. "My Anthony deserves the best after all."

Steve thought he was going to cry or vomit, or maybe even faint himself as Anthony Stark was placed carefully in his arms. It didn't seem to matter that this wasn't the Tony he remembered; the eyes were exactly the same, though they were without the barely concealed hurt that were often in Tony's eyes when he looked at Steve.

He rocked the baby slightly, tuning out the conversation between Peggy, Howard and Maria, and walked over to the window.

"I'll do better this time, Tony. Things will be better. I promise."

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**Written for: **

Disney - C8. Someone fainting with joy over something.

Angel's Archive - 9. "I knew I shouldn't have gotten out of bed today."

Scamander's Case - 3. Maintaining eye contact

Film Festival - 23. "He's supposed to be dead." / "Yeah. Weird."

Bex's Basement - 12. "What's the point of going out? We're just going to wind up back here anyway."

Marvel - 17. Peggy Carter

365\. 237. Sparkle

1000\. 130. Believing someone dead.


End file.
